Apple Mail AppleScript Skill

This skill provides comprehensive guidance on using AppleScript to automate Apple Mail operations, including reading emails, sending messages, and managing mailboxes.

Core Principles

1. Access mailboxes through account objects - Don't try to access inbox directly on accounts
2. Iterate through mailboxes to find the right one - Mailbox names can vary (INBOX, Inbox, etc.)
3. Use account name matching - Match on account name rather than email address property
4. Handle errors gracefully - AppleScript errors can be cryptic, use trial and error with different approaches

Common Query Patterns

1. List All Mail Accounts

Always start by listing accounts to verify the account exists and get the correct name:

osascript <<'EOF'
tell application "Mail"
    set accountNames to {}
    repeat with acc in accounts
        set end of accountNames to (name of acc)
    end repeat
    return accountNames as string
end tell
EOF

Example output:

MonzoiCloudbrunofdcampos@gmail.commmbcfields@gmail.comcampos.bruno.fd@gmail.com

2. Read Last N Emails from an Account

The correct pattern for accessing emails from a specific account:

osascript <<'EOF'
tell application "Mail"
    set targetAccount to account "email@example.com"
    set allMailboxes to every mailbox of targetAccount

    repeat with mbox in allMailboxes
        if name of mbox is "INBOX" or name of mbox is "Inbox" then
            set inboxMsgs to messages of mbox
            set msgCount to count of inboxMsgs
            set numToFetch to 5
            if msgCount < 5 then set numToFetch to msgCount

            set output to ""
            repeat with i from 1 to numToFetch
                set msg to item i of inboxMsgs
                set output to output & "Email #" & i & return
                set output to output & "Subject: " & subject of msg & return
                set output to output & "From: " & sender of msg & return
                set output to output & "Date: " & (date received of msg as string) & return
                set output to output & return & "---" & return & return
            end repeat

            return output
        end if
    end repeat

    return "Inbox not found"
end tell
EOF

Key lessons from trial and error:

• ❌ WRONG: inbox of targetAccount (doesn't work, causes error -1728)
• ❌ WRONG: address of acc (address property doesn't exist reliably)
• ✅ CORRECT: every mailbox of targetAccount then iterate to find "INBOX" or "Inbox"

3. Read Email Content

Get the full body content of a specific email:

osascript <<'EOF'
tell application "Mail"
    set targetAccount to account "email@example.com"
    set allMailboxes to every mailbox of targetAccount

    repeat with mbox in allMailboxes
        if name of mbox is "INBOX" or name of mbox is "Inbox" then
            set msg to item 1 of messages of mbox
            set emailContent to content of msg
            return emailContent
        end if
    end repeat
end tell
EOF

4. Send an Email

Create and send a new email:

osascript <<'EOF'
tell application "Mail"
    set newMessage to make new outgoing message with properties {subject:"Your Subject", content:"Your email body here", visible:true}
    tell newMessage
        make new to recipient at end of to recipients with properties {address:"recipient@example.com"}
        send
    end tell
end tell
EOF

Options:

• visible:true - Shows the compose window before sending (useful for review)
• visible:false - Sends silently in the background

5. Reply to an Email

Reply to an existing email (preserves threading):

osascript <<'EOF'
tell application "Mail"
    set targetAccount to account "email@example.com"
    set allMailboxes to every mailbox of targetAccount

    repeat with mbox in allMailboxes
        if name of mbox is "INBOX" or name of mbox is "Inbox" then
            -- Find the message to reply to (e.g., by sender)
            set foundMessages to (messages of mbox whose sender contains "sender@example.com")
            set originalMsg to item 1 of foundMessages

            -- Create reply
            set theReply to reply originalMsg
            tell theReply
                set content to "Your reply message here"
                send
            end tell

            return "Reply sent successfully"
        end if
    end repeat
end tell
EOF

Key points:

• Use reply originalMsg to create a threaded reply (NOT make new outgoing message)
• The reply command automatically sets the recipient and subject with "Re:"
• Don't use with opening window false parameter, it causes syntax errors
• Set the content of the reply before sending

Reply vs New Email:

• ❌ WRONG: Creating new message to same recipient (breaks threading)

set newMessage to make new outgoing message with properties {subject:"Re: Subject"}

• ✅ CORRECT: Using reply command on original message (maintains threading)

set theReply to reply originalMsg

6. Search Emails by Subject

Find emails matching a subject keyword:

osascript <<'EOF'
tell application "Mail"
    set targetAccount to account "email@example.com"
    set allMailboxes to every mailbox of targetAccount

    repeat with mbox in allMailboxes
        if name of mbox is "INBOX" or name of mbox is "Inbox" then
            set foundMessages to (messages of mbox whose subject contains "keyword")
            set output to ""

            repeat with msg in foundMessages
                set output to output & "Subject: " & subject of msg & return
                set output to output & "From: " & sender of msg & return
                set output to output & "Date: " & (date received of msg as string) & return
                set output to output & "---" & return
            end repeat

            return output
        end if
    end repeat
end tell
EOF

7. Search Emails by Sender

Find all emails from a specific sender:

osascript <<'EOF'
tell application "Mail"
    set targetAccount to account "email@example.com"
    set allMailboxes to every mailbox of targetAccount

    repeat with mbox in allMailboxes
        if name of mbox is "INBOX" or name of mbox is "Inbox" then
            set foundMessages to (messages of mbox whose sender contains "sender@example.com")

            set output to "Found " & (count of foundMessages) & " messages" & return & return
            repeat with msg in foundMessages
                set output to output & subject of msg & return
            end repeat

            return output
        end if
    end repeat
end tell
EOF

8. Get Email Metadata Without Content

Get subject, sender, and date without loading full content (faster):

osascript <<'EOF'
tell application "Mail"
    set targetAccount to account "email@example.com"
    set allMailboxes to every mailbox of targetAccount

    repeat with mbox in allMailboxes
        if name of mbox is "INBOX" or name of mbox is "Inbox" then
            set recentMsgs to items 1 thru 10 of messages of mbox
            set output to ""

            repeat with msg in recentMsgs
                set output to output & subject of msg & " | " & sender of msg & return
            end repeat

            return output
        end if
    end repeat
end tell
EOF

9. Check Unread Message Count

Count unread messages in inbox:

osascript <<'EOF'
tell application "Mail"
    set targetAccount to account "email@example.com"
    set allMailboxes to every mailbox of targetAccount

    repeat with mbox in allMailboxes
        if name of mbox is "INBOX" or name of mbox is "Inbox" then
            set unreadCount to count of (messages of mbox whose read status is false)
            return "Unread messages: " & unreadCount
        end if
    en